


once, there was a way

by allirox13



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Endgame, Gen, Post-Sburb, References to the Beatles, because im trash
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-12
Updated: 2015-02-20
Packaged: 2018-03-12 02:09:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,150
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3339731
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/allirox13/pseuds/allirox13
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The end is both everything and everything they had expected.<br/>And for the first time since this wretched game began, there are no strings attached.<br/>All is forgiven between the children of Eden, of the new world.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Golden Slumbers

**Author's Note:**

> This work is meant to flow in a poetic manner, interspersed with references to the last three tracks of "Abbey Road" by the Beatles- Golden Slumbers, Carry That Weight, and The End.

The moment the Lord of Time falls to the ground, the four of them are enveloped in golden light.  
 _Once there was a way to get back homeward..._  
Dave instinctively raises his sword, but Jade puts a hand on his shoulder, smiling.  
"It's over."  
 _Once there was a way to get back home._  
Rose falls to her knees and weeps, echoing the words repeatedly, as a sacred mantra.  
"It's over. It's over. It's over."  
John stands staring straight ahead, not sure what to say or think. And he is about to say something too, before the light  
explodes  
and sleep claims him.  
 _Sleep, pretty darling, do not cry..._  
They are apart, each in a grainy room with the quality of a VCR.  
Jade squints, and tries to get her bearings. An infant's sharp cry breaks the silence. She tries to turn her head, but she is frozen.  
But the scene shifts itself, and as Jade looks at the baby's dark hair and green eyes, she understands.  
A man with salt-and-pepper hair sits by the baby's side picks her up, holds her to his heart.  
Her acute hearing can sense his heartbeat. 

Rose is still kneeling, and surges with confusion when she cannot stand up. In the distance, she can hear a woman's voice.  
As she strains to hear the words, suddenly the volume goes up. The woman is telling a story.  
A young girl of about 2 or 3 years sits in lady's lap, her orchid eyes fixed on a grand illustration of a wizard.  
The woman pauses to take a sip of her martini, and then she turns the page.

Dave is still poised to attack, and when the sound of clashing metal hits his ears, he jumps and tries to turn.  
He cannot.  
But then a man who's barely old enough to drink comes into focus, showing a little boy with blonde hair how to hold a sword.  
The boy's hands tremble, but the man holds them still, and shows him how to position his feet.  
A crow flies overhead, and its shadow crosses the blade.

John is terrified. He tries to speak, call out for his friends, but his mouth makes no sound. In fact, it is dead silent.  
But then, the quiet tinkle of a Steinway piano comes into earshot. It grows louder, and John cannot shake the strange sense of deja vu the tune gives him.  
It's so familiar....  
Then he sees a little tyke at the bench. His fingers tickle the ivory keys, and a man in a fedora smokes his pipe and nods in approval at the boy.  
The faint scent of chocolate chip cookies fills the air as the child plays.  
It is a refrain, he can tell from the way the music is organized. It's so haunting.  
 _And I will sing a lullaby._  
Then just as quickly as the memories had started, they ended.  
The four were back in the golden abyss, together trying to make heads and tails of their situation.  
And the tears began to flow between them, and the oceans were created.  
Their footsteps gave birth to the continents, the islands, and the earth.  
Specks of golden light flurried around the Players' eyes and a great exhaustion overwhelmed them.  
 **Rest.**

 _Golden slumbers fill your eyes..._  
And as the children rested, they were delivered to their new world, and the game placed them at the foot of a little village.  
And the game was won.  
 _Smiles await you when you rise._  
And it was good.


	2. Carry That Weight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wherein old burdens are shrugged off and new burdens are placed upon the four Winners.

The first thing Jade realizes when she wakes up is that the constant flow of sprite knowledge that she had attained during the game is gone. The power of the Green Sun no longer courses through her.  
"I'm human."  
It doesn't come as a surprise; Davesprite had once told her that when the game was won, the game constructs would self-destruct, and she had spent many an hour wondering what would happen to Jadesprite, or rather to her, after the game.  
She is relieved to be alive. She is relieved to no longer have those animal urges and instincts. She is grateful that the world of pure color is no longer in muted grays and yellows.  
But Bec is gone. Forever. Her best friend, her caretaker, her guardian... gone. And his knowledge, the secrets of the universe that he had taught her- erased. Jade is no longer an all-powerful First Guardian.  
"I'm human."  
 _Boy, you're gonna carry that weight, carry that weight, a long time..._  
The piano tinkles lightly in John's head as he sits up and takes in his surroundings. He doesn't flinch when he sees Jade, who is standing eerily still and staring straight forward. She is fighting back tears, he notes. It takes his a couple moments to realize that the white, soft ears that Jade had sported for the past three years have disappeared.  
He wonders what she is thinking.  
The melody begins to crescendo.  
John lets his fingers sprawl across an imaginary keyboard, and as he plays the song from memory, a light breeze whooshes through the clearing. The wind runs a hand through Jade's hair, and she turns and gives a faint smile.  
The song ends. John lifts his fingers from the intangible piano, and the wind hisses out. A light flickers in the distance.  
 _Boy, you're gonna carry that weight, carry that weight, a long time._  
Dave can't find his shades anywhere. The light makes him squint and he furrows his brow. He sees John, Jade- Rose is still out for the count- and he wonders why the two of them look so distant. They're staring at a blinking light in the distance.  
A metronome ticks in his head, marking 60 beats per minute. 4/4 time signature. One and two and three and four.  
Four.  
What about the others? Where were they?  
 _Boy, you're gonna carry that weight, carry that weight, a long time._  
Rose feels hungover. She hasn't touched alcohol since the meteor incident, of course- but the dullish throbbing in her head is all too familiar to her. There.  
She immediately catches sight of the other three.  
"We won."  
Jade trembles when Rose says this.  
 _I never give you my number, I only give you my invitation._  
Rose stoops next to Jade and places a hand on her shaking shoulder.  
"Jade, it's over. We won."  
 _And in the middle of the celebration, I break down._

I know," Jade whispers. "But what if the game isn't done playing us yet? What if-"  
Dave cuts her off before she can continue. "Jade, look around! All this space. It's ours. This is our fucking world!"  
John is still staring at the light.  
"John?" Rose calls.  
He's silent.  
The silence covers the four like a blanket for the next five minutes.  
"What's out there?" John finally breaks the spell. "What kind of gods are we going to be?" 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This isn't as good as Golden Slumbers, but I tried.  
> Much of this is based off of my own personal headcanons, such as Jade losing her First Guardian powers. If you think about it, since sprites are just game constructs, it is only logical to conclude that the sprite part of Jade will dissolve when the game is terminated.


End file.
